Sunrise
by Alexandra989
Summary: In the middle of the war, Will Solace, son of Apollo, has to take up the position as cabin counselor. His father and siblings are there to support him. One-shot.


The enemy withdrew at sunrise.

Will ran out of the plaza and grabbed the bike. He glanced around, half-expecting Pompona to start chucking fruits at him, but the statue of the Roman goddess was nowhere in sight. He wasn't a son of Hermes, but the bike wasn't Percy's either, and he really needed it at the moment.

Annabeth was going to be fine. A little sense of pride stirred up within Will's usual humble self. He had always been the best in his cabin with healing, and had helped many demigods when they got injured during Capture the Flag or other camp activities. But most of the injuries had been minor; burns, sprains, etc. He had never had his skills put to the test in a near-death situation like Annabeth's before. By Olympus, maybe one day he could be like Asclepius, god of medicine, and his own immortal half-brother.

He looked up at the rising sun as the bike zoomed through the streets, headed for the Williamsburg Bridge. A sense of worry replaced the pride. Not even Zeus's thunderbolt nor the convergence of the other Olympians did much to bring down the creature. The last he had seen of his father was the sun chariot streaking in a blur of crimson and orange across the sky towards Typhon, with flaming arrows hurtling out towards the beast.

The other Apollo campers were still at the bridge. Some were on the ground, leaning against the walls, exhausted from all the fighting and their hearts heavy with grief. A few others were roaming the area, scrounging for stray arrows that weren't bent or broken. The musicians plucked their bowstrings and sang soothing hymns to their younger siblings while the healers were doing their best. They had long stopped looking for Michael.

The campers looked up as Will approached. A few of them scrambled to their feet and came running towards him, pulling him into hugs. It broke his heart to see the tear-streaked faces of the younger ones and the dark expressions on the older siblings.

"M-Michael always teased me, but he was an amazing b-brother," sobbed one of the younger sisters. An older sibling stroked her blonde head comfortingly. She buried her head in his chest and cried silently. The others looked more morose than ever. Will turned to the nearest sibling. Austin.

The question was inevitable. "H-how... how many?" he asked, his voice coming out a little hoarse.

Austin took a shaky breath. "About four." He named two campers who had fallen and one more who had been dragged off by a monster. "And... there's Michael." His voice quivered when he spoke.

Will ran to the edge, where the bridge had fallen, and stared down at the water. He clenched his fist. His knees hit the ground hard. Michael... wonderful Michael who never failed to make his siblings laugh, with his jokes or his amusing (short) appearance.

_"Break it! Use your powers!"_

His last words to Percy.

A lump rose in Will's throat. Why was it always them? Last year, it had been Lee Fletcher. Other campers probably thought the children of Apollo didn't have much to grief about; there were many of them, they probably didn't know each other all that well. But the siblings of Cabin 7 were the closest in camp. Will gritted his teeth as the tears brimming his blue eyes threatened to fall. He should not be crying. Not when he had so many younger siblings. He, and the other older siblings, needed to be strong for them.

"Will."

Austin got down on his knees next to him. "Look, I know it isn't the best time to tell you this, but the battle's not over yet, and we have no leader."

Because Michael's gone. A silence hung between the two half-brothers.

"You're the second oldest, after Michael," Austin went on. "I know this is bad timing, but you have to... you have to be our new counselor."

Will swallowed. He continued staring down at the rippling water, imagining Michael's body, sinking deeper and deeper. He tried to push that thought out of his head, but prayed to whatever river god was available, to at least send up their brother's body. Slowly, Will turned to meet Austin's eyes. They were blue, and were the exact replica of his own, and their father's. Usually, the ADHD part of his brain would start wondering why only about twenty percent of the Apollo cabin members inherited their mothers' traits, but it wasn't kicking in at that moment.

Counselor of Cabin 7? He couldn't. He couldn't just replace Michael. Will had always looked up (never literally, though) to that brother of his, and he knew he wasn't worthy of taking the latter's place.

"I can't," he said, looking away.

"You have to," Austin replied, in a small voice. "You're the oldest now, and..." He looked over his shoulder, before turning back to Will. "Everyone's counting on you, Will."

Will looked up at the newly-risen sun. The sunlight washed over the entire sleeping city, casting an orange hue on the skyscrapers. The silence made it all seem very peaceful. He thought of his father. Could the god feel it? Did the god know four of his kids had gone down? Did he care? Will knew his father cared. Apollo was one of the few gods who paid his children frequent, unexpected visits, usually in the form of a tramp named Fred. They woke up to presents from him on their birthdays and Christmas. He had brought some of them to the camp himself, and most of them had been claimed as soon as they entered camp, which was why their number could rival the Hermes cabin's.

As Will thought about his father, there was a blinding flash of light, and a moment later, the god stood next to them. The other members looked up in surprise, but that astonishment quickly morphed into delight. All of them, averting their eyes from his fiery armor that threatened to blind them if they stared too long, instead, trained their gazes on his face.

"Daddy!" exclaimed a younger sibling, racing forwards and throwing her arms around her father. Will grabbed her at the last moment to slow her down, in case she slipped or tripped and dove headfirst into the water.

"How's everyone?" Apollo greeted. He flashed his usual blinding, perfect smile, but this time it looked weak and melancholic. The sun god got his reply in the form of forlorn faces.

Will looked up as his father knelt on his other side. "Will, I know what you're thinking," Apollo said. Before his son could reply, he went on. "Look, I don't have long, Zeus just gave me a few minutes. And Artemis would never let me hear the end of it if I returned late in such a crucial battle." He laid a hand on Will's shoulder. "I know you're thinking you can never be as good as Lee or Michael in leading your siblings, and that it isn't right to just... replace Michael now that he's gone..." The god trailed off. "But your siblings need a leader. And I have confidence you will make a fine counselor."

Will looked at his father. The Far-Darter gave him a small encouraging smile. Will threw a glance over his shoulder at his younger siblings. He turned back to gaze at the water. What had Michael felt when he was forced to be counselor after Lee's death? Will remembered his grim face and set jaw. The Apollo campers never fought over the leadership of their cabin before, they were fine with the oldest kid being the counselor. Michael had been grieving over Lee, just like the rest of them, but he knew there was an approaching war, and he had been ready.

Will looked up once more at the sun. "Okay," he said, his voice still hoarse.

"You'll do great," the archer god smiled, squeezing his son's shoulder before getting to his feet. He turned to his other children, and waved a hand over the injured ones, healing them instantly, before facing the rest of them. "I'll see you soon," he said. There was a short pause before he continued. "I'm so proud of all of you."

A young sibling began to tear up while the others rushed in for one last hug. Will and Austin joined in. As they broke apart, there was another blinding flash, and Apollo was gone.

"Tonight, when we fight, we fight for all of us!" Will tried to rally his siblings. Smiles began to break out on their faces, their resolve returned by the visit from their father. Will brought them over to the Plaza where they could recuperate and probably get something to eat. When night comes, they would be ready.

* * *

**Just thought there wasn't enough of Will and his siblings in the books. **

** P.S. Anyone up for the headcanon that Michael washed up on Ogygia?**


End file.
